Kivela chronic wasting disease bill passes House

LANSING, MI-- A bill to combat chronic wasting disease sponsored by the late Representative John Kivela has passed the House.

The legislation would increase the penalties for illegally bringing a deer carcass from a state with CWD into Michigan. Fines would range from $500 to $2,000 and violators could face up to 90 days in jail.

Kivela, who died last week, was especially concerned about CWD spreading to deer herds in the U.P.

No one voted against the bill, which would amend the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act. It now heads to the senate for consideration.

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LANSING, MI-- State Representative John Kivela is hoping a bill he introduced to combat chronic wasting disease in deer will win approval in the House and the Senate.

The legislation would increase the penalties for illegally bringing a deer carcass from a state with CWD into Michigan. Fines would range from $500 to $2,000, and violators could face up to 90 days in jail.

Kivela says a healthy deer herd is important to the economy, and deer hunting is threatened by the possibility of infected deer entering the U.P. from Wisconsin.